My Ragged Heart
by 3rdbase101
Summary: From the day she was born, Yellowfang always knew that Raggedpelt was her soulmate. Why then, does it seem like all of the world, and StarClan is against her?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: A new story! Read and review after your done!**

From the moment I was first born, I knew that there was my own personal StarClan member watching over me.

* * *

"Push, Cinderflower, push," Ivyheart mewed, giving the she-cat a slight nudge in her stomach. The kits were tough coming out, and a small gray she-cat had already caused enough trouble in the young she-cat.

I felt my mother squirm and spasm, making it hard to suckle. With a loud yowl that I couldn't hear, but feel through the floor, another body was pressed near mine.

I felt for my mother, aware of the four presences other than my mother and my new sibling. One of them felt diffenretn though, as if that presence was made only for me. Another spasm rocked the sweet smelling body of my mother, and she finally went still.

I pressed eagerly against her, suckling, and getting nourishment from her rich milk. My closed eyes felt heavy, and I felt a nose prod my small body weakly. A purr rumbled deep, and I vibrated with it.

Through my dark and soundless world, I felt that my life would not have begun unless I saw that presence, even though I had been clearly born. My sibling truned over in sleep, kicking me in the head.

I mewled helplessly, and a tail wrapped itself around me, comforting me enough so that I could fall into sleep.

* * *

"Yarrowkit!" Cinderflower called, nudging my sleeping body. A moon ago, my eyes had opened, revealing themselves to be a deep blue. She named me Yarrowkit and my brother Gorgekit, and it had been fun tumbling about the nursery.

I opened my eyes, letting the weak sun shining through the nursery awake me. Yawning loudly, I prodded Gorgekit, and he mewled. In the corner, Milkfeather stirred, waking her own two kits.

Raggedkit stretched, and immediately bounded over, nosing me eagerly. I got up, and tackled him playfully, growling. Waspkit hissed his indifference, and fell back asleep.

"If you two are to play," Cinderflower mewed, "Then take it outside." Raggedkit gasped happily, grateful that the queen felt safe enough to let her kit out in the open. With her tail, Cinderflower pulled Gorgekit closer to her body. Gorgekit's black fur was much different than his mother's, but Yarrowkit's matched Cinderflower's evenly.

"Come on," Raggedkit whispered, ushering me outside. Although I saw it briefly yesterday, the bright and large world still stunned me. The presence I had felt when I was born moved towards the fresh-kill pile, and pulled out a small lizard.

It was late leaf-bare, and the small lizard was quite big compared to the rest. Raggedkit brought it to me, and I prepared to take a large bite when he stopped me.

"Wait, Yarrowkit," he mewed in a whisper. "Featherstripe needs this more than you do, and she'll give us a story in return."

The idea sounding too good to pass up, I followed him to the elder's den, where the ancient Featherstripe greeted us. "Welcome little kits. I see your lizard, and you have eyes that sparkle like the many stars above. You are here for more than giving me fresh-kill, you want a story." Raggedkit nodded eagerly, sitting down in the spacious den. I sat next to him, my eyes glued to the oldest ShadowClan cat. "How about the story of Treetail, ThunderClan and the badger?" she asked.

I gasped. Badgers were dangerous creatures that could kill without a second thought. "Yes, Featherstripe. We would like to hear it," Raggedkit mewed politely, giving me a quick glance of sympathy.

The gray she-cat began her tale. "Long, long ago, before my parents were kits, a strong ShadowClan warrior saw that ThunderClan, our arch enemies, were stealing prey. Determined to find out why, he crept into their territory, where he found the biggest badger he had ever seen. And then, when he least expected it…."

Featherstripe's story continued on, but I didn't focus on it. The one thing my mind was centered around was the warm fur of Raggedkit next to me, and his steady breathing. I was finally alive.

**A/N: How do you think the beginning went? Please review.**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Yes! One review, much more than I expected for the start of the story. Before I go on any farther, I mean to tell you that this story will contain mostly short (but not that short) chapters. Now that that is settled, please read and review!**

"Come on, Raggedkit," Nightpaw mewed. His fur was dusty with the sand we had kicked up in our play fight.

Raggedkit jumped at Nightpaw, who easily sidestepped. I jumped at Nightpaw when he turned to Raggedkit, and soon he lay pinned beneath my small kit paws.

"Good job, Yarrowkit," Nightpaw laughed, getting up, and making me tumble down. Raggedkit immediately came over and pressed his nose into my fur.

"You would make a really good warrior some day, even better than Cedarstar!" I batted at his nose playfully, which he returned with a growl. Nightpaw perked his ears, and made us follow him back to camp.

"Don't say a word," he whispered. "I'm not supposed to let you out. Go through Ivyheart's den, and pretend you have been there the whole time. Tomorrow we'll do the same thing." Nightpaw watched us go through the gap in Ivyheart's den, and we made a small mess to make it look as if we had been there the whole time. We heard Nightpaw go through the marshy entrance, where he greeted Ivyheart.

With the force of the secret inside of Raggedkit and me, we could barely hold still, let alone quiet. When Ivyheart's lithe gray body came through, however, the sound of her screech had us running away in terror, to the safety of the nursery.

Cinderflower pressed her warm body against mine, and I wished Gorgekit was here. He was currently outside with Waspkit, talking about small, insignificant kit things.

Suddenly, a warm body pressed itself against my own. I groggily looked up to see Raggedkit, his eyes warm and caring towards me. Neither Cinderflower nor Milkfeather seemed to mind, so Raggedkit and I slept together for the first time.

In my dream, a lithe brown she-cat appeared in front of me. The landscape was a lovely hunting ground, like I was told WindClan's was. The ground dipped up and down, leaving many places upon which prey could hide, giving a warrior a fun time while providing for their Clan. The large grass blew in the slight wind, creating ripples like those found in the river. Nothing could have been more beautiful than this hunting ground, except for the she-cat next to me.

"Welcome, young kit. I am Larkwing, and I have come to tell you that you have a great destiny in front of you. StarClan will always remain close to you, no matter what path you take, although you must remember your duties. If you shan't, then it shall be your downfall," Larkwing mewed in a quiet and calm voice. She touched her nose to my forehead, and then everything went black.

Deep breathing brought me from the depths of my slumber, and I blinked open my eyes to reveal that the two queens were now sleeping with their respective kits. I was disappointed. Why had Raggedkit left me? Why had he been replaced with Gorgekit?

I leaned over Milkfeather's body, and prodded one kit in the side. A hiss greeted my words, and I knew that I had awakened the wrong one.

"Why do you always have to bother me, Yarrowkit?" Waspkit growled, his eyes still closed. "I want nothing to do with you, as you cannot hold intelligent conversation like your brother. Go have fun playing your stupid games with Raggedkit, I really don't care."

With his brother fuming beside him, Raggedkit rolled over to see Yarrowkit. However, something was different. Her gray fur was dirt-streaked like usual, and Cinderflower would want to clean it soon. The tear in her ear she got from wrestling with Nightpaw was still there, too. What was different about the young she-cat?

Suddenly, it hit him. "Your eyes," he whispered. Cinderflower turned to see, and gasped. The kit-blue had been replaced with an intelligent yellow, so like Raventail.

"You lost your kit-eyes," Cinderflower explained, for Yarrowkit had begun to become agitated. Her hackles rose in defense, and her newly colored eyes widened.

"You shouldn't have been named Yarrowkit," Raggedkit joked. "Yellowkit seems to be a better name for you."

Cinderflower cocked her head, and called for her mate. Raventail appeared, his tail drooping in lack of sleep. "What is it, dear?" he asked. "I had just come from _another_ patrol of the WindClan border, and I need some sleep. Cedarstar thinks that Meadowstar will plan to act, but her deputy, Tallfoot is keeping her back."

The gray queen listened quietly to her mate's rants, and then pointed with her tail to Yarrowkit. He saw her eyes, so like his, and purred. "I thought it was something like 'Gorgekit got a thorn in his paw,'" he mewed. "This is so much better, though. What color does my son have?"

Raggedkit, bouncing over to the small tom, woke him before either of the parents could. Angry, he was about to tell Raggedkit to leave him alone, when his father called his attention. His eyes were still the bright kit-blue, disappointing the first-time father. It would have been wonderful if the kits were exact mixes of himself and Cinderflower, but they must wait longer.

"Nothing, son," Raventail mewed. "Go back to sleep." Complying with his father's wished, Gorgekit turned over and soon the soft sounds of his snores filled the air.

"Raventail, Raventail," Raggedkit cried happily. "Yarrowkit should be named Yellowkit. It would fit her better. Yarrow is yucky, anyways."

Raventail seemed to contemplate for a few seconds, and then turned to Cinderflower, who shrugged. "Would you mind being renamed Yellowkit, Yarrowkit?"

It was if my heart had burst with joy, and I was left with a star burning deep within my chest. My soulmate, the one chosen by StarClan for me, had chosen my name? What better way was there to tell me that we belonged together?

"Yes, Raventail," I breathed, enjoying every minute of it. "I would love to be renamed Yellowkit."

Raggedkit pressed his fur against my own in joy. Raventail touched my forehead, exactly like the way Larkwing did in my dream. With that he whispered quietly, but yet everyone in the nursery could hear. "Then with the blessings of StarClan, I give you your new name. No longer are you Yarrowkit, but you shall start a life afresh as Yellowkit."

His nose felt cool, and his words seemed to soar up into the frigid leaf-bare air. A few clouds passed along the sun, dotting the ground with shadows. However, a small beam of sunlight entered its way into the nursery, as if StarClan itself approved of my choice.

Raventail soon left, and it was back to the queens and kits. Waspkit and Gorgekit kept calling me Yarrowkit for fun, but Raggedkit told them to stop, and they did.

The sun continued to shine, resting on my StarClan member's pelt, making him shine like the star that was alight in my chest. My breath caught in my throat. StarClan said they had a future for me. With all my life I wanted it to include Raggedkit.

**A/N: Tell me your thoughts of this chapter, please. It's just one click away, one click on that lonely green button down there…**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: I thank you for those willing enough to leave a review. Now, I ask you to review after reading this one? Thanks.**

Sleep was kind. No dreams to pester me, or my brother kicking me in sleep. I slept well that night.

Of course, one type of dream was greatly accepted, and had often. However, that night, nothing came, and instantly, when I woke up, I knew that something was wrong.

In the dim light of the rising sun, one could see nothing wrong with this scene. Milkfeather slept with her two kits wrapped tightly within her tail. They were getting rather big, so big that Waspkit was halfway out of Milkfeather's tail, and Raggedkit shown above it.

On the other side of the nursery, my mother lay with Gorgekit and I huddled against her belly. With a rustle, Mudstorm entered the nursery, and looked quietly at his sleeping mate and kits. He probably had to do a dawn patrol, and wanted to make sure that they were ok before going out.

His eyes scanned the nursery, and quickly I pretended I was asleep. I didn't need Mudstorm to know that I was troubled at this time in the morning.

The dark brown tabby tom left, and I could hear him softly calling Foxpaw and Nightpaw to come do the patrol with him and Stonetooth. They agreed, silently complaining, but doing it all the same.

Milkfeather turned in her sleep, and sighed deeply. Apparently, she wasn't affected with the same worry I had now. The thoughts bounced around my head. What was the matter? The thing that wouldn't leave me alone?

Gorgekit kicked me, like usual, and blinked awake. He stared sleepily at my faking form, before falling asleep once more. Being in this position, with my tail curled around my paws, it made me tired. Finally, after fighting it off for so long, I succumbed to sleep, too.

When I awoke, it was a large hustle and bustle inside the nursery. Milkfeather stood licking Raggedkit clean, and Waspkit tussled with Gorgekit in the corner.

"What are you getting cleaned for?" I asked Raggedkit, yawning as I did so. He gave me a funny glance, and then went to watching our brothers play.

Had I offended him? What was that important that he was getting cleaned by his mother, and became offended when I asked why?

I glanced at him. With Milkfeather's careful tongue rasping over his dark brown fur, it appeared glossier and thicker than it usually was. His muscles rippled underneath his coat. They weren't kit muscles either. They were I'm-growing-older-and-I-have-big-cat muscles. He had started losing his kit look to him, and he was beginning to look more like a grownup warrior.

The warrior part of my rambling mind rang a bell. No wonder he looked older. Raggedkit and Waspkit were turning 6 moons old today, and they were becoming apprentices!

I rushed up to Raggedkit. "I'm sorry for forgetting that your ceremony was today," I muttered, pressing my nose deep into his dark, glossy pelt.

Raggedkit purred. "I never was really angry with you," he admitted. "Just kind of shocked. It's a good thing you remembered, though! Now you can chant as me and Waspkit get our names and mentors!"

I purred and nodded, half-heartedly listening to his excited chattering. I finally knew what was wrong. Today was his sixth moon, and he was becoming an apprentice. Today marked the day where I would have to wait three more moons before joining him in the apprentices den.

Cedarstar called the cats to the clearing, where he began his announcement. Milkfeather ushered her kits outside, pride resonating from every hair in her pelt. Mudstorm sat proudly next to her as his sons walked up to the young and lively Cedarstar.

This was a moment I'd never forget, not any part. I would remember the low chirps of the crickets down in the marshes, with the frogs echoing their thoughts. I would remember the sun shining off their pelts, as Cedarstar began. I would remember the nervousness in both Cedarstar's and Waspkit's eyes, but the confidence in Raggedkit's. It was a new thing for all, because Duskstar had died about a moon before, and the kits can only become apprentices once.

"Cats of ShadowClan," Cedarstar began. "I have called you here today to witness what makes our clan strong. Two kits, from Milkfeather and Mudstorm, sit in front of us, on the day of their sixth moon."

All was quiet then. Nothing dared to speak, croak, or chirp in this fateful moment. "They are here to become apprentices, so by StarClan, I commend them to their mentors.

"Raggedkit, you are smart, energetic and strong. Ratfur will show you how to hunt, care for others, and fight. Ratfur, you have taught Milkfeather, Raggedkit's mother, well, and I expect none the worse to be taught to her son. From this moment on, until you reach your warrior name you will be named Raggedpaw." Raggedpaw went over to his mentor and touched noses with the old tabby tom. Although his age clearly showed, Ratfur was eager to have another apprentice and teach him in the ways of a true ShadowClan warrior.

Waspkit, you are playful, caring and quick. Tinybird, this is your first apprentice, and I expect you to teach Wasp-paw all that I have taught you. Waspkit, from this moment on, you will be known as Wasp-paw." The brown and white tom went over to Tinybird enviously, as if he wished he could have the senior warrior who was almost an elder more that the fresh, young, she-cat in front of him.

"Raggedpaw! Raggedpaw!" I shouted, totally ignoring the other brother. There was only one that I cared for, and that tom stood proudly next to his mentor, looking me dead in the eyes with happiness.

Even though he was leaving me now, I promise to follow you Raggedpaw. Whether it is to the apprentice's den, the warrior's den, or the elder's den, I'll follow you Raggedpaw. Just remember that I'll only be a few moons behind.

**A/N: You all probably know by now. Please review.**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: I know, I know, it's been too long. However, I have written a couple of chapters for other stories and they shall be out soon. Read, review and enjoy!**

The nursery felt cold to me, even though I was sleeping next to my brother, Gorgekit, and Cinderflower like always. For the past quarter moon I had had that feeling, and the nursery felt cold. It felt like I was alone in here, and I was almost always lonely.

A frog croaked nearby, making me nearly jump out of my fur. To calm my nerves, I listened carefully to the sound of the marshes, honing my skills for the time I could join Raggedpaw in the apprentice's den. Somewhere along the marsh, under the cover of a no moon, I heard pawsteps of a predator carefully stalking its prey.

The scent of rabbit came floating along the breeze, making my nose wrinkle. "Rabbits don't belong in the marsh," I muttered, thinking of the juicy toads and lizards that did populate our home. Interested, I poked my head out of the nursery, trying to get a better look.

Crowtail stood guard at the entrance, alert and pulling air over his scent glands carefully. The rabbit scent came again, followed by the sound of more pawsteps. The pure black warrior's yellow eyes became wide, and his fur bristled.

"WindClan! WindClan is attacking!" he yowled, unsheathing his claws and blocking the entrance as best as he could.

A graceful light brown blur flew out of the darkness, and tackled Crowtail. "Quiet, you stupid mouse-brained cat! They'll hear you and you'll ruin the surprise," she mewed, joking around as her warriors streamed into the vulnerable ShadowClan camp.

As I pulled my head back into the nursery, I turned and hid behind Cinderflower, scared for my life. The yowls of awakened and angered ShadowClan cats came through the night, meeting the battle calls of the WindClan cats. I thought of Raggedpaw, his lean dark brown tabby form dodging in and out of the much larger warriors, scoring his claws down their flanks.

Cedarstar threatened Meadowstar to leave before her warriors were hurt, but the arrogant she-cat just laughed. I bristled, ready to defend my leader and to get that disrespectful WindClan cat. My mother held me back, however, when I tried rushing to the nursery entrance. She didn't notice, though, when Gorgekit slipped out from underneath her.

"I'll get her," he growled, fluffing up his fur and trying to make himself as big as possible as he rushed into the heat of the battle.

Cinderflower looked surprised at what her only son had done. "No," she cried, starting after him. With a quick glance at me, I saw her feelings torn. She wanted to stay here and protect me, but the thought of Gorgekit outside won. "Stay here," she ordered before exiting, leaving me alone.

I sneered at the place my mother just was. Why was _I _stuck inside the nursery alone? If there was any cat that could get Gorgekit back safely, it would be _me._

I tumbled out of the nursery; my claws unsheathed, and was immediately filled with fear. My eyes grew wide, and I could detect my own fear scent in the air because of what I saw. So many cats were clawing at each other, tearing up the soft clearing ground. Feet stamped near me, almost crushing me if I hadn't dove out of the way.

The cat that I had wanted to see most suddenly became clear to my eyes. I ran towards him, and he turned, and took on another, much larger opponent, all while fighting an apprentice his own size. "Raggedpaw is going to be the best fighter in the Clans," I mewed, oblivious to anything other than Raggedpaw.

He turned and suddenly leapt at me. Afraid, I closed my eyes and waited for the collision that never came. He leapt on Haretail, who had been stalking me like a coward from behind.

"What are you doing out here?" Raggedpaw snarled at me, although his eyes were soft. He had chased off Haretail, and was currently focused on me.

I was going to answer, I really was, but I had seen what I had been looking for, Gorgekit. My brother was pinned between a large white tom's paws, squealing in his pain. The tom was smiling evilly, his light blue eyes filled with malice. I was going to escape Raggedpaw's stern glare and save my brother when I saw Wasppaw, and breathed a sigh of relief. Wasppaw cared for Gorgekit, much more than me, and would save him.

"Don't touch him," the light brown tabby apprentice hissed, and leaped at Iceclaw. The intruding tom froze, and then smiled, dragging his claws across the soft flesh of Gorgekit's throat. After my brother began to bleed out, Iceclaw ducked Wasppaw's attack, and laughed at the feeble attack.

Once Wasppaw hit the ground, Iceclaw attacked before he could provide a suitable opponent. Raggedpaw's breath became tattered as he watched his brother being mauled, unable to move.

Cedarstar drove Meadowstar out finally, and the rest of her warriors followed. Iceclaw glanced at the retreating WindClan warriors, and killed Wasppaw coldheartedly before following.

The dark brown apprentice stumbled over to the dead bodies of our siblings, and I pressed against his fur, so that I could assure myself not to faint. Blood stained the torn up ground, and the sweet, cloying scent of death had already began flirting with the corpses.

As the ShadowClan cats calmed down from the battle, the noise dropped as the bodies were spotted. Cedarstar came over and nosed the bodies of the young cats. Not bothering to jump up to Large Stone, Cedarstar announced his news from the ground.

"Cats of ShadowClan," he began, taking a deep breath and seeming to have a hard time to continue. "We have lost two future warriors. Both would have been an asset to our Clan, I am sure, and their deaths come at a great price for us."

Cinderflower pushed her way through the assembled cats, followed closely by Milkfeather. "Oh, Gorgekit, why?" she wailed, pressing her nose deep into her son's mutilated body. "If only you stayed inside of the nursery!" Raventail sat by Mudstorm, and both toms looked ready to go attack WindClan singlehandedly, if only they were allowed.

Nightpaw came up to me, and uttered some comforting words, slightly ignoring Raggedpaw. I turned to him with hate in my namesake yellow eyes and hissed. "Leave me alone you fox-hearted cat. Can't you see that my brother, and Raggedpaw's brother for that matter, had just been murdered, or are you _blind_?"

Nightpaw looked surprised at my outburst, and Raggedpaw pressed his warm body against mine comfortingly. He looked at me with thanks in his eyes, and a purr rumbled slowly in his throat. Although I was grateful that my StarClan member was still alive and cared for me, I wanted to be alone. I pulled away, and stiumbled5 for the safety of the nursery. I tripped, and landed in the churned up ground, where everything went black and I was left in the safety of my mind.

**A/N: It's been a while, so will you welcome me back with a few reviews?**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: All I will say, after a hard day at the beach, reviews will be greatly appreciated :) **

Darkness was cool. Darkness was alone. Most of all, darkness was forgiving. That is why I was immediately disgusted with myself when my eyes opened, seeking the light that trickled into their gaze.

"Oh, Yellowkit!" Sagewhisker mewed as she saw my eyes crack open. "You're finally awake. Cinderflower was certain that she had lost you too, but I assured her that you were fine, and just suffering from shock."

The she-cat spit that out so quickly that I couldn't really comprehend what she just said. I struggled out of the comfortable marsh grass and feather nest Sagewhisker made for me, and went to the entrance. The fluffy white she-cat moved swiftly towards me, and her whiskers brushed along my fur, making it tingle as Sagewhisker checked her.

"I wouldn't suggest moving anymore, Yellowkit," the medicine cat mewed, sitting down in front of the entrance. I snarled at her, my kit teeth bared in anger.

"You can't tell me what to do," I hissed, pushing past her and walking out into the clear moonlight. It seemed as if the whole of ShadowClan were surrounding the bodies of the two that I knew so well and loved. Their whispers created the false sound of wind flowing through the tall marsh grass, and their eyes glinted in the light. The moon itself was warm and almost full, telling the cats of the special occasion to be happening soon. However, for these two cats, that special occasion would never happen. Iceclaw had taken their lives, and he killed a small part of me.

I felt Sagewhisker following me, watching carefully as I weaved through the cats around the bodies and found Raggedpaw. He glanced at me with sadness in his eyes, finding the same in my own. Although it was such an awkward time, he purred, the noise sounding grating and tired. Cinderflower saw me with him, and pulled me closer to her with her tail.

I squeaked my displeasure, too tired and worn to protest verbally. She shushed me, and I looked back to see Raggedpaw talking to Sagewhisker. She mewed quietly, trying not to disturb the mourning cats. Finally, Raggedpaw got up and followed Sagewhisker to her den. I wanted to yowl madly. Why was she always intervening? Now, before when I was calm in the darkness, or when we were kits and she took the fun out of playing in her and Juniperleaf's herbs?

Cinderflower placed her tail over my mouth, silencing the growl that was beginning to form. I sighed, all anger out of me, the tiredness finally coming. My visit with the darkness hadn't done much to help me, apparently.

I pressed my nose deep into Gorgekit's fur, relishing his scent. The moon shone off a pelt, shining into my eyes. Wasppaw was there, looking so still and forlorn dead. Pushing my nose into his fur as well, I pleaded StarClan to let him have a good afterlife. He cared well for Raggedpaw and Gorgekit, so I must thank him for that. He did better with my younger brother than I had ever cared to do.

Cinderflower pulled me closer to her with her tail, her breathing steady and slightly wet. I pressed my back into her fur, and my nose into Gorgekit's when I realized that this was the last time that I would be sleeping next to, or near my brother. With a wail of sadness, I let myself fall into the deep pit of sleep.

Waking slightly when Cinderflower grabbed me by the scruff, I looked around to see a very different landscape. The clear moon was gone for the night, as it had exchanged positions with the newly risen sun. The hordes of ShadowClan warriors mourning the loss of two future warriors were gone, most likely to sleep or go on patrols.

Cinderflower snuggled next to me in the nursery, curling her tail around me. I didn't want to sleep, however. For the second time in two nights, I made sure my mother was asleep before exiting the rather spacious nursery.

The sun illuminated everything with light, although I found I liked the blue light of the moon better. There was no warrior guarding the entrance, but the fresh scent of a hunting patrol or a border patrol went through the entrance and snores came from the warriors den.

Laughing silently to myself, I padded out the den, and easily through the camp entrance. Nobody was here to stop me! Not Cinderflower, not Cedarstar, not Sagewhisker, not anybody!

My paws stepped lightly over the marsh grass, the frogs croaking and peeping all around me. A silky moth flew by, catching my eyes, and meeting its' untimely doom. Jumping like one of the frogs that I eat, I caught it, and let it flutter between my paws on the ground. I snickered when it went still, and finally pried away its' trap. The moth quivered slightly when I let my paws retreat, trying to make it into the air, but death claiming it before it could soar within the breeze as friends again.

Staring at its frail body, I was reminded of Iceclaw. Did he think of Gorgekit as something as insignificant as a moth? Did he think that it was ok to kill such a creature because it moved and caught his eye? I left the moth alone, glancing at it ever so often as I sat with my tail around my paws reflecting my discovery.

I was just like Iceclaw if I did that, for I know that he only killed Gorgekit because it was something to do. Wasppaw died by protecting that frail life. I had just done what the fox-hearted warrior did, only I had killed one since the moth had no protector.

Its wings fluttering in the wind pitifully without it being alive made me get up. I dug a small kit paw into the ground once, twice, three times until the hole was big enough to house the dead moth. I pushed it in, and quickly covered the body, as I had watched Featherstripe and Grasstail do to other dead warriors.

"Goodbye, Mothflutter," I whispered, hoping the ancestors of this moth would take him into their ranks and forgive me for killing him in cold blood.

Mothflutter's grave was now just a pile of dirt in the marshland, easily forgotten and not seen. That is what I did, actually. I wandered away from his grave, deeper into the marshlands and soon that pile of dirt wasn't seen anymore.

A large weight lifted off my shoulders when I did that, allowing me a happy and brisk walk towards a large, noisy black area, a walk like a kit should be doing. The rank stench hit my nostrils, causing a fear scent to rise within me. I quenched it, however. I was afraid of nothing, as I was Yellowkit, and I just watched my life being torn apart by the death of my brother.

"What is this?" I whispered to myself, looking up and down the stretch of disgusting black path. A shiny red object came hurtling down the stretch, causing me to hiss and jump back. They were _really_ dangerous, as that one almost tried to hit me.

A gruff growl came from somewhere near me, though I couldn't place it with all the other sounds. The scent of WindClan, or ShadowClan couldn't be found from the harsh scent, and I looked across the path wildly, knowing that that was ThunderClan territory and hoping I wasn't crossing.

"What are you doing?" a voice hissed as I was violently picked up by my scruff and hurried away from the path. The ShadowClan cat, as I could tell from his scent now that I was away from that place, brought me to a bunch of other ShadowClan cats.

"Stay away from the thunderpath!" Leopardclaw hissed, dropping me from his mouth. Owltail looked impatient, while Ratfur tried to get the attention of Raggedpaw, who looked sadly at me. I must have run into the patrol, I thought, dipping my head.

"Monsters are very dangerous, Yellowkit," Owltail mewed. "Now can we get on with this? I want to see Cloudfur soon."

Leopardclaw glared at Owltail. "A kit is more important than a mate, if said mate doesn't have kits. Take her back to camp, and you can see Cloudfur. Just be grateful that I won't tell Cedarstar of this moment. Yellowkit, you have to stay in camp, because it's against the warrior code. If you do this again, I'll be sure to tell Cedarstar to postpone your apprentice ceremony."

My heart twinged at this thought. I would have to wait longer to join Raggedpaw, and I would be confined in the nursery for longer. However, with a snide grin I kept to myself, I thought that he doesn't have that power; only Dewclaw, the deputy and Cedarstar had the right to even think about delaying any ceremonies.

Owltail sighed, and picked me up by my scruff. I wanted to his my distaste at everyone grabbing and carrying me about, but I silenced it because I might have gotten into more trouble. The patrol moved east along the _thunderpath_, leaving us behind as we headed the opposite way. I thought I saw Raggedpaw look behind once or twice, but I wasn't sure because Owltail's jogging blurred my vision.

He muttered the short trip, and placed me down soon to the camp. He shoved me in the entrance, and watched me like a falcon as I padded to the nursery, tail in-between my legs. I saw him as I was halfway through depart from his duty and going to the pure white she-cat that he loved.

Cinderflower hadn't woken yet, and I snuggled in close to her, pretending nothing had happened. Even though I pretended, I was still happy I did leave camp. It gave me a chance to explore, and to find what I did was what Iceclaw had. I also noticed Raggedpaw. To tell you the truth, I was really grateful that my mother had been sleeping, so that I could do all I did today. I mean, really, what is life without some danger?

**A/N: I really love writing this story and Yellowkit's point of view. I will update sooner if given reviews, and you can share this joy with me!**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I've gotten a new obsession, which is why I haven't been around in a while. I'll still write Warriors, though, as I can't give up on my original obsession. Read and review!**

When I woke that morning, Cinderflower could barely keep me down. It was _the_ day, and no bad thoughts came to my mind, or could keep me bogged down if they did come. Not the thought of such a bad day to become an apprentice, with the icy rain coming down in torrents, nor the thought that my brother wasn't here that my brother wasn't here with me. All that escaped my mind as I bounced around the nursery, disturbing Poolcloud, the newly made queen.

"Yellowkit," my mother mewed sharply, although the fatigue was easily heard. She caught me by the scruff, and I was held tightly between her front paws as she began cleaning me. I didn't protest or care, just squeaked in excitement, as Raggedpaw and I would soon be reunited.

Raventail came padding through the nursery entrance, pride and pain in his eyes. "Are you coming?" he meowed hoarsely, as if he hadn't spoken in days, which he probably hadn't. "Cedarstar is waiting."

I squirmed out of her tight grip, and into the icy rain, which penetrated my soft kit fur easily. Raventail waited for me at the base of the High Branch, and Cedarstar, in the same condition as I was, called out the familiar greeting. "All cats of ShadowClan old enough to prowl the marsh unscathed gather beneath High Branch for a Clan meeting!"

Although the rain torrents drowned out most of his words, the ShadowClan cats keen ears caught them and they slinked out of their dens, mewing their protest at the soggy weather.

"It is that time again," Cedarstar began, having to yowl louder than usual as thunder followed closely behind the streak of lightning that just shot across the sky. I never noticed the rest of the well known speech, however, as I was paying attention to the eyes of the waiting cats. I saw the eyes of my parents, proud and happy, the eyes of Raggedpaw, ecstatic and anxious, and the eyes of my Clanmates, disgust at the rain and joyful. In a few seconds of watching, I picked my mentor out easily. Her eyes were different, not the usual happiness, but determination, haughtiness and pride shining in her eyes.

He looked at me with meaning, and I stared back at Cedarstar. "I do," I mewed, loud enough to have every single cat hear.

He glanced at me, his eyes shining with amusement. "Then from this moment on, you shall be known as Yellowpaw. Your mentor is now Hollyflower. Hollyflower, you are one of our newest warriors, but the determination and courage you have shown in that little time show you are ready for an apprentice. May you pass that all onto Yellowpaw."

I padded proudly up to my new mentor, and touched her nose in a way that showed that I was sophisticated. They chanted my name quickly and loudly, before disappearing like the toads on a hot, dry day. They left me alone, all alone in the clearing except for Hollyflower.

"Come," she mewed gruffly. "Today I'll show you the territory, and then you can make yourself a bed in the apprentices den. After this long run, you can get out of the rain, and I'll leave you alone until tomorrow morning."

She left the camp quickly, leaving me trailing behind, desperate to catch up, to show her I was worthy. "This is the marshes, where we do most of our hunting," she explained, never slowing down. We passed long grasses, and a stream, filled high over the muddy banks by the pouring rain. The warmer, newleaf weather was coming, shown by the small flower buds on the hardy marsh bushes and the croaking of small frogs.

"Around here is where I buried Mothflutter!" I whispered quietly, looking for the small mound of dirt that signaled his final resting place.

Not paying attention, I crashed into Hollyflower, making her stumble into a large puddle of Thunderpath water. "Watch where you're going!" she spat. "Thunderpaths are very dangerous, and many a good warrior and apprentice have been killed here."

She sat down and began cleaning her gray and white fur of the muddy, foul smelling water. I was flooded with the memory of when I escaped as a kit, and the patrol found me so close to the thunderpath. The puddle which she fell into earlier greedily drank the clean raindrops, making them foul as well. I felt a rumbling underneath my paws, and looked at my mentor, my fear-scent escaping without permission, staining the air.

"Run!" Hollyflower yowled, and we sprinted off the hard thunderpath and into the comforting marsh grasses, but not quick enough the wave of thunderpath water that the monster spat at us. "Great," Hollyflower muttered. "I'll never be clean. If you were wondering, that was the Thunderpath that separates us from ThunderClan."

I glanced over at the large and dangerous Thunderpath, thinking of the enemy Clan that lived there. Maybe because they were so dangerous, they had the most dangerous thing to a cat, which the monster ran on, named after them.

"WindClan is along this path and stay away from the border, I don't want to get any more Thunderpath water on my already foul fur," Hollyflower ordered, disgust still prominent in her voice, and by her movement.

We trudged through our territory, the marsh retaining the water well, sometimes creating pools high enough to wet my belly fur. A little way through, I noticed that the scent of the border changed. It changed slightly, from the musky scent of mouse and bracken to rabbits and the wind. I lifted my head to the sky, blinking the icy rain out of my eyes. "Hollyflower?" I meowed quietly, the first words ever spoken to my mentor.

She grunted her response, never slowing her pace or turning around. She weaved her way through the branches of a dead tree, not giving me any other sign that she heard me and was paying attention.

"Is that WindClan?" I asked, not really sure if she was listening. I remembered this scent. What a horrible memory, and I shuddered remembering it.

"Yes," the gray and white she-cat mewed, stopping short. I sidestepped her to avoid running into my mentor again, and getting her even madder. "Smell this," she ordered, pointing with her tail to a hole underneath the Thunderpath, hidden well. I smelt, and was greeted with the familiar scent of my own Clan and a stronger smell of the Clans that I smelled before.

"That is how we get to Gatherings," Hollyflower explained, kneading her claws into the wet soil. "No other Clan knows of this, and if they try raiding us, they risk getting killed by the vicious monsters. We, however, can just slip through this hole, and no harm is done to our raiding party, giving us full energy and strength against them. Come along."

My mentor moved ahead swiftly, her long, spindly legs moving quickly ahead of my kit legs. "The moonstone is over there," she meowed, pointing with her tail over across WindClan territory. I really wished that Hollyflower would stop, for my pelt felt really help with rain and I was tired. As if StarClan had heard my thoughts and granted my wish, she slowed down, finally stopping near a place that reeked of crowfood.

"The carrionplace," she explained. "When there is no prey to be found normally, we will hunt here, where mice and rats live in abundance. However, sometimes a sickness follows the prey, and we haven't a cure for it."

Hollyflower looked at me with laughter in her usually cold eyes. "Let's go back to camp now. You look as if your paws will fall off any second now. You've seen the territory, and I really can't teach you to fight in this weather."

The weariness crept silently out of my body, replaced with the joy of being in a new, warm nest and being with Raggedpaw. I pranced behind her, amazed on how she knew the way through the marsh grasses and torrents of rain. Hollyflower led me through the concealed entrance, and I slid into the old rabbit warren used as the apprentice's den.

"Had fun in the territory?" Nightpaw laughed, evaluating my sodden appearance and muddy paws. I raised my lip slightly, and curtly nodded in his direction. The tom was really getting on my nerves, even though I had loved him when I had been younger.

"Come here," Tallpaw mewed, pointing with her front paw to a warm nest of old marsh grass, and moss. "It's between mine and Raggedpaw's," she mewed. Her sister, Morningpaw, looked at me gravely, as if I had a disease, and I couldn't figure out why.

As I collapsed into my nest, I felt nothing but pure joy. It was intensified with Raggedpaw came to me with a slightly wet lizard in his jaws. The smell of blood, and the sight of its green scales made me so hungry, I almost ate it there when he dropped it and sat next to me.

"Now," he murmured, "I'm going to teach you something called 'sharing tongues.'" He began dragging his rough tongue slowly across my matted and wet fur, drying and smoothing it out. The feeling was pleasurable, and immediately I began to fall into a stupor, as I cleansed him too.

"So," Nightpaw began, trying to break the silence within the apprentice's den. The rain still drummed on the ground above, making nice, soothing sounds, and masking most of the awkward moment underneath. "What do you want to be named as a warrior?"

"That's such a kit game!" Morningpaw snorted, curling up in her nest two down for me, and closing her eyes, as if to ignore us by sleeping.

Tallpaw looked at her sister. "Ignore her," she mewed quietly. "She just doesn't want to say that she wants to be named Morningdew as a warrior." Morningpaw's eyes flashed open angrily, but Tallpaw just laughed. "_I _personally want to be named Tallpetal, so that I can have the rough beginning of a warrior, yet have a sweet part to it if I ever want to be a queen, and I fall for a tom."

"Ragged_star_ will be mine," Raggedpaw mewed quietly, the words only gracing my ears with their presence. "I would like to be named Raggedstripe, for my pelt," he mewed louder, for everyone to hear.

The black tom looked expectantly at me. "I don't know," I finally sighed. "Maybe something like Yelloweyes, or Yellowbreeze. Those sound nice, don't they?"

He laughed the high pitched sound grating on my ears. "I would love to see you named Yellowflower, which is totally against your attitude. I'll be named Nightclaw, you can bet on it," Nightpaw mewed haughtily.

Tallpaw stared at us for a few seconds before joining her sister in her nest, obviously bored. "Night," she mewed, and copied her sister by closing her eyes.

Raggedpaw and I continued sharing tongues until Nightpaw finally realize that no cat in this small den was listening to him and fell asleep himself.

Finally, the world was quiet, except for the smooth breathing of the young ShadowClan cats and the rain. We continued what we were doing, occasionally taking a bite of the quickly depleting lizard. I realized in my pleasure caused stupor, that I wasn't a kit anymore, and soon I would become a warrior, one who would have her own kits. No longer did life seem to go on forever, as it seemed like when I was in the nursery. No, it was rather short, and soon it might be when I would join my brother and watch my kin live their lives from high in StarClan. The cold thought of growing up and dying was brushed away by Raggedpaw's rough tongue, which continued to rasp across my fur. I purred, for another, warmer, Raggedpaw centered thought came forward. He always took away any bad feelings.

**A/N: Review, pretty please with a cherry on top?**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: Two more days of school, and three legit days until my birthday (If you didn't notice, those are the same day)! Sorry for not updating sooner, I had a lot of homework, and finals to boot. However, once school is over, you can expect more updates, because I'll have more time! Read and review!**

"Yellowpaw," Hollyflower hissed, her head sticking into the apprentice's den. I groggily raised my head, and looked at her, blinking the sleep from her eyes. She looked very angry, and I looked around the den, seeing that I was the only cat in there. She motioned for me to follow her outside, and I complied, shaking my fur into its normal position.

"We were supposed to go on the dawn patrol," Hollyflower growled, "However, you decided to sleep later, so Raggedpaw and Ratfur took our job." I glanced around at the camp, and then at the sun. It was barely sunhigh! She expected me to be up this early, early enough to do a dawn patrol?

"So what _are_ we going to do?" I asked, trying to stray away from the subject of my sleeping pattern and Hollyflower's anger.

She sighed, and sat down. "Nightpaw and Cloudfur want to practice his fighting skills. I want to see yours, so we will wait for them to finish hunting, and then we'll go to the training area."

Fighting against Nightpaw, I mused. It couldn't be that bad. Raggedpaw and I had fought with him when we were kits, and we won every once in a while. I sat with my tail curled around my paws, mirroring Hollyflower, and waited for the pitch black tom to come back.

Finally, after the sun had inched slightly higher in the sky, Nightpaw trotted into the camp, closely followed by his mentor, Cloudfur. He dropped his fat toad, a sure sign that Greenleaf was coming, onto the budding fresh-kill pile. Cloudfur whispered something to Hollyflower, who hissed it away, and motioned for Nightpaw and myself. The warriors walked out of camp, and we closely followed.

"Are you kidding me, Cloudfur?" Hollyflower screeched as we neared the training grounds. "You really think that Nightpaw is _that_ effective in battle? That he could take on Morningstar? I bet that _my_ apprentice could beat him, and she hasn't even been an apprentice for more than a day!"

The white warrior seemed shaken by her outburst, and muttered a response. Hollyflower growled at him, lifting her lip from her teeth. She nudged me into the torn up fighting ground across from Nightpaw, whose fur was flat in calmness.

"Ready?" Cloudfur asked calmly, looking at both apprentices. I nodded with determination, and Nightpaw's face changed of one of I-really-don't-care, to one of I'm-beating-you-easily.

"Of course she's ready," Hollyflower hissed, "Now go!" Nightpaw was a little shaken by the quick start, and I took advantage of that by leaping at him swiftly. However, he gathered his senses, and dodged, spinning around to face me.

As I glared into Nightpaw's fury filled eyes, I realized some things. Nightpaw wasn't playing easy with me now, as he had when I was a kit. Also, I had no fighting training at all! How was Hollyflower expecting me to do this? I glanced over at my mentor's face, but her eyes were a mask, covering up all true emotion. I wanted to mewl like a kit, to screech, 'how can you expect me to win!'

Suddenly, a large mound of fur bowled me over, knocking the wind out of me. Nightpaw stood on top of me, his eyes cold, none of that feeling he shown before. My back paws scrabbled along his thick belly fur, not making much damage. I brought my front paws up, and slashed Nightpaw across the muzzle.

Blood dripped from the gash in his mouth, making Nightpaw hiss in pain. He recoiled, and fell off of me. Seeing the weakness, I jumped onto Nightpaw, seeing that he wasn't offering any remorse, so I wasn't going to offer any either. I felt his back paws scrabble against _my_ belly, and felt happiness seeing that the table had turned.

A white blur was seen in my side vision, and it landed against me, pulling me off my prey. Hollyflower hissed at the same time I did, and I prepared to fight the older cat.

"No claws!" Cloudfur hissed through clenched teeth. He stood up, and shook his fur out, and went to see his apprentice.

Hollyflower stalked over to me, the anger in her eyes aimed towards Cloudfur and not me. "You did well," she mewed quietly. "However, Cloudfur is right; claws must be sheathed at all time. He was, on the other paw, wrong for tackling you."

Nightpaw struggled up from the ground, leaning on his mentor's shoulder. His icy blue eyes glared at me coldly before ushering Nightpaw towards camp.

Hollyflower snorted, and watched Cloudfur leave. "He shouldn't have bragged. He said that Nightpaw was the best fighter, and you clearly beat him. In a true battle, Nightpaw would have been crowfood. Now that I see you have heart and you can fight, we shall leave Nightpaw and Cloudfur, and I'll teach you some real moves."

My ears perked up at the thought. Knowing what I was doing while fighting, instead of just fighting on instinct would be fun!

"Now," she began, her face serious and solemn, although a hint of pride was still visible. "Pretend I am a warrior of ThunderCLan, and I have come to take your kits. I am a much bigger warrior, and am chasing you. What do you do?"

Although I was still unsure, it seemed as if Hollyflower would like me to respond. "Turn around and bite or scratch them?" I asked meekly, sure that it was not the right answer.

My mentor sighed, and shook her head. "No, the best way to attack hem is to use a back kick." She looked expectantly at me, and then sighed once more when I had nothing to say. "A back kick is what you use when an enemy is behind you. You put all your weight on your front paws, and lash out with your back ones, causing intense damage. You try," she mewed, after demonstrating the back kick for me.

I tried copying her attack, but failed miserably. I put too much weight on my front paws, and I wound up flipping over, my face pressed against the cold, hard ground. Hollyflower came up to me, and I could see that she was disappointed. Her eyes seemed to ask me, 'where did all that fighting skill go?'

"That was… ok, I guess," she muttered, sitting with her tail wrapped around her paws next to me. "Try again."

Her eyes boring into me, I tried the move once more, but when I started to fall forward, Hollyflower nudged me back, and I effectively lashed out at the air behind me.

"There," she mewed, slightly happier than what she sounded before. "That is the perfect balance of weight that I have helped, and you have just done a good job of defeating the air."

I _mrrowed_ in laughter. "Really Hollyflower?" I asked, looking up to her in awe.

She nodded twice, and gave me a small smile. "Yes, it was, Yellowpaw," she assured me. "And when you perfect that, we can go onto other, harder moves, and maybe take on Nightpaw again, and win without using our claws."

"Yeah, he looked pretty torn up when he got back to camp," a voice mewed, and the dark gray and white she-cat whirled around, her fur standing on end. "Calm down, Hollyflower. It's only me, Ratfur, and Raggedpaw. By seeing what Yellowpaw did to Nightpaw, I want to see if she could win against Raggedpaw."

My dark brown tabby tom looked at me with two emotions, anticipation and fear of hurting me. I snorted at his fear, and took up the position across from him, as I had done with Nightpaw. Hollyflower was growling low in her throat about how 'mentors keep bragging about their apprentices while they really can't fight.'

"Ready?" Ratfur mewed, looking at us both. I was reminded of how Cloudfur did it before, and I hoped that I didn't hurt Raggedpaw as much as I had done Nightpaw. "Go!" Ratfur shouted, and scrambled out of the center of the battling ground as Raggedpaw and I lunged at each other.

He slashed at my chest, claws sheathed, and it hit its mark, although the powerful move didn't hurt or anything. The thought dawned on me as I copied his move, and it also hit, but it made him hiss in pain. Raggedpaw was going _easy_ on me!

I snarled my disdain, and backpedaled a few steps, intending to use the move that Hollyflower just taught me. The dark brown apprentice followed, and I turned tail, and lashed out with my hind paws. I hit him, and he growled, but the force of my kick propelled me into the marsh grass, where I promptly collapsed in a sink hole.

I struggled out of it, and saw Raggedpaw waiting calmly for me inside of the battle circle. Hissing, I stalked towards him, intending to attack, and not prepared to defend. He took that opportunity, and leapt upon me, like Nightpaw did. He used his size, and grabbed my scruff and shook it a few times, hard. My head was rattled, and as I tried to locate my StarClan member and opponent, I saw two of everything.

Raggedpaw came at me from the side, tumbling me over, and making me land on my side. I was still shaken up from his attack, so I put up no fight as he pinned me easily.

"Way to use your size to your advantage in the scruff shake, Raggedpaw," my mentor mewed, which surprised me. Raggedpaw let me up, and licked my tousled fur gently twice.

"Good battle," he mewed quietly, and went to sit by his mentor. Hollyflower came over and examined me, all the while purring in her chest. Her strange behavior was confusing and scaring me. Why was she doing this?

"Anything hurt?" Ratfur asked, coming to join Hollyflower. I nodded, noticing how my paw twinged whenever I tried to walk on it.

"Here," Hollyflower meowed, offering me her shoulder. "I'll take you to Sagewhisker. Ratfur, Raggedpaw fought well today."

My mentor and I moved off, making slow progress because I had to rely on her for most of the movement. "You did well today, beating Nightpaw," she told me. "But, better yet, was the fight against Raggedpaw. Even though you didn't win, you used the move that I just taught you, and I could have sworn Ratfur was scared that Raggedpaw was going to lose. You'll be one of the best warriors ShadowClan has ever seen in fighting skills."

My heart warmed as I heard her say that. Did she really mean it? "The best warrior ShadowClan has seen," I whispered to myself, seeing the camp arrive in the distance. I imagined the future. I would not only be the best warrior, but leader too, with Raggedpaw as my deputy. The future seemed so close at that moment, so tangible, but it was broken by Sagewhisker's calm voice.

"What happened?" she asked, looking me over. Hollyflower explained what happened, as she ushered me into the back of the den. I curled up tightly, keeping my hurt paw gingerly in front. Nightpaw was also there, his muzzle looking funny, as it had been covered in cobwebs.

Sagewhisker glanced ever so often at me during Hollyflower's explanation and I hated her for it. She glanced at me with a knowing look, one that just dripped off her knowledge of what Larkwing told me. Ivyheart came through the den then, and I saw her old body vibrate with laughter at my usually cold mentor caring for her apprentice.

"We'll take care of Yellowpaw," Ivyheart wheezed, ushering the anxious Hollyflower out. The oldest cat in ShadowClan gave me some poppy seeds, while Sagewhisker checked my paw. "I really should become an elder," the gray she-cat mewed. "I trust you Sagewhisker, and I really am getting old…"

Her apprentice purred. "You still do your job well, Ivyheart." She glanced away from her mentor, and looked at me, a smirk in her eyes.

My lip pulled away from my teeth, like Hollyflower did today while I was fighting Nightpaw. I wanted to shout at her, 'Yes! Larkwing came to me and told me I had a destiny, but it doesn't involve _you!_"

The last thing I noticed before the poppy seeds went into effect was Sagewhisker's silent laughter at me, and I hated her for it.

**A/N: R&R people!**


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Here we go, a new chapter! Read, enjoy and review!**

It had been two days since I had gotten out of the medicine den, and they had been good days. I had learned slightly to hunt frogs, toads and lizards. Hollyflower taught me some more moves, including the scruff shake, which Raggedpaw had used on me the other day.

However, like all Clan cats know, the peace could never last. It came on a warm dusky night, the moon sliding in and out of view from the wispy clouds. I had been cleaning Raggedpaw, our purrs loud in the clearing.

"Cats of ShadowClan!" Cedarstar called. His eyes were alight in happiness, and he looked storng and proud. "It is time to avenge the deaths of Wasppaw and Gorgekit . We are to attack WindClan tonight, when the clouds on the horizon merge above our heads. That way, we can use the advantage of being used to hunting and seeing in the dark against WindClan."

Cheers went up through the crowd. All had wanted to punish the fast Clan since their deaths, and now was the opportune moment. All wanted to go, but they knew that a few would have to stay behind in case the camp was attacked.

"I choose myself, Ratfur, Raventail , Crowtail, Stonetooth, Mudstorm, and Hollyflower. And, of course, any apprentices those I have chosen have."

I swelled with pride, for Cedarstar had chosen me to go by choosing Hollyflower. Tallpaw rushed over, talking excitedly about how they were going to battle WindClan. I gave her half a mind, for I knew why Cedarstar had chosen the cats he did. He wanted cats like Raventail, Raggedpaw and I. Cats that wanted revenge on WindClan for the wrong they did on their kin.

"Move out!" Cedarstar cried, jumping down from Tall Branch and towards the entrance to the camp. We all followed quietly behind him, making no noise and using the darkness of the clouds covering the moon to our advantage.

Adrenaline rushed in my veins, heightening my senses. Tallpaw was to my left, her fur brushing mine as she strided forward with each of my steps. Raggedpaw was behind me, his breathing even. Even though I couldn't see him, I _felt_ him.

Cedarstar reached the hole underneath the thunderpath. The monsters above were zooming past quickly, and I knew that without our hole, we would have waited forever to get through. "Remember," Cedarstar said before poking his head thorugh the hole. "We are here to injure, maim, but _not kill_. It is to show WindClan that we aren't to be reconned with."

I heard Raventail sigh. I knew that my father was eager to sink his claws into some WindClan pelt. However, the fact that he couldn't kill his first son's killer left him even angrier.

The marshy swamps I was accoustumed to leveled and drained out, leaving a flat plain of blowing grass. The wind rippled through the grass, and it came up to my ears in some palces. Cedarstar crouched down, lost within the sea of grass, and the rest of us followed suit.

It was different, looking out through the swirling weeds. Although I was used to seeing in the dark, it was even darker down here, and I could only rely on my nose and ears to get me out. I heard rustling ehead, and followed Cedarstar's scent. Suddenly, I felt a tail tip on my shoulder. I hissed and lashed out with my claws out, sure that I had caught Iceclaw.

"Ow, Tellowpaw," Raggedpaw mewed, holding his left paw to the small cut in his nose. "I couldn't see, so I thought that I could follow you easy with my tail tip on your shoulder."

Immediately embarrassed, I said a muffled sorry before continuing after Cedarstar and the rest of the patrol. Raggepaw kept his tail tip on my shoulder, and I could hear him licking his nose every once in a while, trying to clean the blood I gave him.

Cedarstar stopped short, and I almost crahed into him. Afraid that he would react like Hollyflower, I scuttled back two paces, only to bump into my mentor, who hissed. I wondered why the leader had stopped, and soon it had came to me. The grass was no longer bigger than me. It had evened out nicely, cushioning my paws only.

There was a dip in the moor below, and I could see a bunch of cats sleeping on it easily. Only one cat guarded the dips entrance, and they swayed ever so often, a sure sign of their tiredness.

"Perfect," Cedarstar hissed, his eyes alight. He crept to the side, to get out of the way of the guarding cat's sight. When he was out of the way, he crawled forward, and the rest of us did also. Finally, when he was close enough to reach out and touch the cat, he leapt, landing squarely on his shoulders.

"ShadowCl – " the cat cried, his warning cut short by the large leader's weight. I looked around quickly. The other cats from WindClan hadn't woken up. It would be easy to get revenge on them while they were sleeping.

Cedarstar turned to the cat, and shifted his weight so that it remained on the tom's ribcage. He then began to speak, much louder than he should. "Quiet, you stupid mouse-brained cat! They'll hear you and you'll ruin the surprise!"

I turned to Raggedpaw angriliy. "Why is he doing that?" I hissed. Raggedpaw shook his head and pointed with his tail to the center of the dip, where Morningstar had just risen.

"Making fun of me I see, Cedarstar," she growled. The warriors around her were beginning to get up, and I tried to understand why Cedarstar had done that. "You won't last long in our camp. WindClan, attack! Get them out of our home!"

The once sleeping cats sprang forward, their tiredness easily forgotten as they strove to protecet their camp. It dawned on me then, as I ducked under Ferretwhisker's jump. Cedarstar had wanted the battle to be fair, so he had woken the enemy warriors. That was more than Morningstar could say, beccuase she had attacked whilst all our warriors were asleep.

The ShadowClan leader stood his ground, and the attacking patrol stood proudly at the top of the camp. They were ready for any attack, and it was coming soon. THe lithe WindClan warrirs stood up, and began prowling towards the intruders, intent on beating them this time.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: So far, I've been pretty good with my whole New Year's resolution! So, read, enjoy, and review!**

For a second, I was consumed with fear. We had gone out to attack these cats, and they had anger in loosing last time, and fury in us attacking them. I was about to do a very despicable thing: turn tail, and run. "Gorgekit," a small voice in my mind whispered, and I braced myself, waiting for the oncoming warriors. They seemed to have so many more, but I was prepared.

"Now!" Cedarstar yowled, and jumped forward. He landed on one dark gray cat, and flipping over, Cedarstar threw the other cat across the clearing. That was what each side was waiting for. With yowls we charged at one another, and I was searching fruitlessly for Iceclaw.

"Want to attack Iceclaw together?" Raggedpaw asked, skidding into the fight I was having with a smaller apprentice and knocking her out of the way. "Come on, I know where he is!" That was the decider. We sprinted through the masses of fighting cats, looking for one in particular.

"There!" I cried, pointing towards the bulky white tom with my tail. He was currently laughing over a pinned Hollyflower, and I felt a pang for my mentor. I saw a flash of claws, and I leapt forward without thinking much. I knocked Iceclaw off course, and his claws slid down my side.

I yowled in pain, although I clamped my teeth down on his foreleg. I barely felt Raggedpaw jump onto Iceclaw, I was becoming fuzzy in the head. My teeth clamped down harder and harder until I felt the bone crack in his front leg. It wasn't all that different from cracking a bone in a snake. Iceclaw deafeningly screeched, and Raggedpaw jumped off in fear.

I staggered up, and held onto Iceclaw's other front paw. Seeing me, Raggedpaw jumped onto Iceclaw's back and started scratching his sides. Hollyflower watched for a second more, and then bounded off, sure that we had the tom under control.

Another bone broke, and Iceclaw spat at me. He threw Raggedpaw off, and turned to face me. I was staggering towards Iceclaw's back legs, and the tom fell on top of me. "Don't try it, kit."

His weight started to suffocate me, and my lungs felt ready to burst. None of the cold, night air could reach my aching body, and the feeling that I was about to pass out came over me.

Suddenly, as my lungs were about to give out on me, the weight lifted. Spots danced in front of my eyes, and the air rushed into my body. It came in unhealthy gulps, and burned with icy fire on the way down.

"You killed my son," a voice hissed, "You better not touch my daughter!" Raventail! He had come to my aid! He nosed my side, and licked my head with careful strokes. "Are you ok?" he mewed quietly. It was a surprise that I could even hear him, what with all the noise that the fighting cats were making.

I nodded feebly, and got to my feet. "I'll take you to camp. Cedarstar said that he wanted more cats. We might be winning this one. So we have to hurry." I nodded again, and wobbled after my dad on unstable legs.

He moved swiftly through the night, and for one second I wished I wasn't of ShadowClan descent. I wished that I was RiverClan, who used their speed in the water. Then I wouldn't be doing this right now, and we'd be moving at a much better pace…

Everything passed in a blur, with Raventail leading the way, and occasionally nosing me forward. I barely noticed when we went into the hole, and the sides pressed against me. It was only after the sweet, clean night air came to my nose that I knew we had been under the Thunderpath.

The ground turned marshy, and my speed improved. I was on ground that I knew, that I could handle. We moved faster, and soon my vision became less blurry.

"Hurry," Raventail mewed tersely, and I began to run. Spots danced in my vision, but I knew that I was almost home, almost safe. We burst into camp, and Raventail started prattling off names Cedarstar needed to fight. Those cats got up quickly and left with Raventail as I hobbled over to the medicine den. Surprisingly, Ivyheart rushed out.

"I need to check if there are other injured cats!" she declared, and also disappeared into the night. Sedgewhisker gave me a look, and I laid down in one of the comfy beds made of marsh grass. In the medicine den again, I sighed. The way things were going, I was never going to be a warrior!

"Pretty deep gash in your side," Sedgewhisker mused, walking around and inspecting me. That'd take some cobweb, something for infection, and some poppy seeds to help you sleep."

My eyes closed with desperation. _More_ poppy seeds? Sooner or later I'd become addicted to those things! However, I took the poppy seeds quietly once Sedgewhisker gave them to me. I'd be best if I didn't bother her.

I heard Sedgewhisker start chewing the marigold to put on my side for infection. The thought of the mushy herb on my side gave me two emotions. One was happiness, as there would be no infection, and the burn would go away. But the second was angriness. How come Sedgewhisker had to do this? Ivyheart was older, so Sedgewhisker should've gone to check the dying warriors.

As the effects of the poppy seeds took over, I heard the warriors return to camp. "We were victorious!" Cedarstar yowled, and I yowled weakly in unison with the rest of the cats. Stonetooth limped into the medicine den, and spoke quietly with Sedgewhisker.

"Hawkwing… death… sorry…" was all that I could hear, although I had been listening in as hard as I could. Death? Was it a WindClan one? But Cedarstar said not to kill…

Sedgewhisker's face fell, and I knew that it was a ShadowClan death. Raggedpaw! I thought suddenly, and almost forgot to be quiet. I totally forgot about him! What if he was the one that was killed?

My fears were quelled when my StarClan member himself walked in. He had a shallow cut above his eye, but otherwise he was unscathed. "Are you ok?" he whispered. I nodded, and just looked at Raggedpaw. My sleepy daze held his eyes for a second, and I could see that something was bothering him.

"Is anything wrong?" I slurred, falling deeper and deeper into the clutches of the poppy seeds. Raggedpaw opened his mouth, and looked like a fish as the words refused to come out. He looked around the medicine den, and just then I realized that Sedgewhisker wasn't there.

"Ivyheart was caught by a WindClan warrior and killed. StarClan covered the moon, and Morningstar apologized. That's why we 'won,'" Raggedpaw whispered. This time it was my turn to gape like a fish. Ivyheart? Dead?

WindClan was a menace to ShadowClan. Every time we came into contact with them, one of our own would die. Whether it is kits, apprentices, or our medicine cat, they had no remorse. I then decided -no matter how close to StarClan my destiny will be - I will get revenge on WindClan.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: Happy belated Fourth of July (and for those non-American devoted readers, happy Normal Day!). Tried getting this out yesterday, but my computer wasn't co-operating. **

Sedgewhisker let me out of the medicine den early, because she was in mourning. In her defense, I wasn't that injured, but what if I _was_? She couldn't just drop everything to cry about Ivyheart, I mean, _I_ didn't when Gorgekit died.

Hollyflower had been awake for a while now, and waited while I emerged from the apprentice's den. "Hush, we're going off for some secret training. It'd help when you fight WindClan again."

I gaped at her, but she shook her head and whisked out of camp. Following her was no easy task, as my mentor decided to nearly sprint over the marsh. She took me out by the Carrionplace, and its rank smell invaded my delicate scent glands.

Before, the sun had just barely risen, and was casting a nice orange glow on the ShadowClan surroundings. Here, however, the gray smoke rising from within covered up any of that previous beauty, and substituted its own disgusting reality.

"Why are we here?" I ask, my nose wrinkled. Hollyflower looked at me, and shook her head. She shushed me, and stared into the Carrionplace with great interest.

"My brother is coming. He was exiled from ShadowClan for killing a WindClan warrior. Those were the days, when you actually get in trouble and exiled for killing – and going against the Warrior Code. You'll be learning a few things from him, since he excels in his new Clan with this," Hollyflower explained, her expression not changing. The only thing that changed about her was her mouth, and how it moved often.

A snap in the Carrionplace made Hollyflower's ears twitch, and she stepped forward daintily. A dark gray tom slunk from the reek, and purred as he saw his sister. They touched noses, and spoke a few choice words before the tom came over to me.

I could see why he had come through the Carrionplace, because he stunk of nothing other than it. He looked healthy enough, and Hollyflower spoke of him living in another Clan. Therefore, he simply _couldn't _live in the Carrionplace, so the scent was to hide where he was from.

"Kit," he spoke, bowing his head a fraction of a centimeter. I ruffled at the word, but he continued to speak before I could make a scathing remark. "I am Wolf, once Cindertail. But I can never go back to that, and I like my name better now, anyway."

Hollyflower chuckled at his words, and I looked at her shocked. She didn't often laugh at much, and it was surprising to see her so happy and jolly. I saw her eyes, and how they were bright and sparkling; she must really have missed her brother.

"First of all, I am an _apprentice_. Surely you remember them? Not a kit," I growled, my fur still not back to its original position. I went to speak again, but Hollyflower shoved her tail in my mouth. She growled at me, and motioned towards Wolf.

"You have attitude, I like that," he mewed, sounding very bored. "You might actually be a fair recipient of this knowledge." Wolf paused, and looked at Hollyflower. She nodded, and carefully drew her tail out of my mouth. My mentor warned me quietly, and I huffed in response.

"My sister told me that you want revenge on WindClan for the death of your Clanmates, and more importantly, your brother. Is this true?" Wolf asked, his narrow yellow eyes darting between me and his sister.

I was dumbstruck. How did Hollyflower know I wanted revenge on WindClan? Did I say it out loud? I racked my brain for any time that I could have said that, but came up blank. She must know me a lot better than I expected. "Yes," I said quietly, fearing that Cedarstar might pop out and discover what I was doing.

"Good. Two moves – horrible ones that shouldn't be used out of a revenge plot – will do the trick. They are variations of two things," Wolf explained, drawing my attention with every word he mewed, "that every cat knows. One is a simple fighting move, but the other is a move used while hunting prey. Are you ready?"

I braced myself for an attack, and gave a terse nod. Wolf and Hollyflower laughed in harmony, and my mentor bumped me out of my strict defensive position. "He's going to explain it first, mousebrain," she laughed, and I was shocked once more. Hollyflower calling me names in a fun, light manner? This was starting to creep me out.

Wolf stepped forward, and I flinched instinctively. Hollyflower giggled again, and I found my gaze drawn to her rather than my new mentor. "What do you do to kill a toad, or rat?" he asked, and I was thrown off by the random question.

"With… uh… the bite to the back of the neck… uh… the killing bite!" I thought, nearly shouting it at the end. I crouched when I realized what I did, still expecting Cedarstar to come from someplace.

Wolf nodded. "Good. A cat is just like a rat, except much harder to kill. For one, they have claws, and will be trying like mad to escape you. Revenge is perfect – an eye for an eye, a death for a death. Imagine how you would bite a rat, and then do that on a cat, except much harder. _That_ is the true Killing Bite, and, as I said, it's the best revenge for a death."

"Sadly," Hollyflower cut in, and my eyes shot to her, "we can't practice here, since none of us are willing to die. And I doubt Wolf brought any cats for killing with him."

Wolf didn't correct Hollyflower, and that made me shudder. That must mean that his Clan would actually murder cats, and do it just for practice!

"Visualize that one, and remember it when you come into a revenge fight. It doesn't require practice on cats, since you do it so often with prey. The other one is a fighting move greatly amplified. You do know what they call the… Leap and Cover, I think. Right?" Wolf asked Hollyflower, uncertainty creeping into his voice for the first time since I met him.

Hollyflower nodded, and Wolf continued on with his speech. "For a smaller cat like you, because you're not going to get much bigger than that," he mewed, and I looked at my body. I was about average sized for my age, but this was considered kinda small for a warrior. "You leap onto your opponents back, and cover their eyes with your paws. It blinds them temporarily, and allows you to do a lot of damage to their body with your teeth."

I nodded, and looked at him with curiosity, this was getting good. "And how are we going to _amplify_that move? It seems pretty bad as it is."

Wolf chuckled, and I realized in that second how much I disliked his gruff, scratchy laugh. "Simple. You extend your claws _into_ their eyes instead of in the skin around it." I gasped, appalled at the horror. Eye juices would come out, and that's disgusting.

"Now, don't knock that technique just because it's _gross_. Imagine what would happen if faced with a large opponent? Blind them or suffer multiple injuries? The previous is a lot better for you, and they can't attack if they can't see you," Wolf explained, and some of the disgust faded away. My life was more important than something I could lick away. Plus, it'd be very good revenge against WindClan, to blind them all.

"Practice on Hollyflower, and then on me," Wolf mewed. "Except," he continued menacingly, a growl building low in his chest, "_don't_ extend your claws! I like my eyes a lot, thank you."

I nodded, and instantly crouched. I stalked towards Hollyflower, who pretended not to see me. When I was about to jump onto her back though, she turned around and snarled, batting at me with her paws. I yowled, and jumped back a few foxlengths.

Stunned, Hollyflower took a menacing step towards me, and I charged forward. Now it was her turn to be startled, as I quickly overtook her side, pretending to drag my claws along it. I dove under her, confusing her even more, and quickly got up before she landed on me.

I was in a high of adrenaline, and felt like I could beat any cat that dared challenge me or my Clan. I feinted to the left, and Hollyflower took the bait. With a war cry, I landed on her back. My mentor writhed and tried to dislodge me, but I struck my paws over her eyes, and teased my paws. She hissed, and stopped fighting.

"That's good," she mewed gruffly. "Now get off. And if you ever even just 'pretend' to extend your claws, I will have you train until you drop dead from exhaustion. Do you understand?"

I nodded, and whispered a quiet "Yes, Hollyflower." I got off of her back, and dropped to the marshy ground beneath my paws. Wolf was looking at me, and slightly smiling.

"You're very good at improvising. I wanted Hollyflower to fight back, and you overcame her. That's enough practice." He went over and touched his sister's nose again, and whispered goodbye to her, and that he'd see her soon. "Well done, Kit. I wish you luck against WindClan. Get revenge for your brother, and a little for Cindertail, ok?"

With that, the dark gray tom I had begun to realize as a new teacher left, starting a swift jog towards Carrionplace, looking a lot like his sister.

"Come on," Hollyflower said tersely, and I sighed in relief because she was back to normal. We nearly sprinted through ShadowClan territory, and we arrived at the camp entrance. I was out of breath and heaving, but my mentor was calm and collected, as if she didn't just sprint.

"We need to work on that. ShadowClan cats are stealthy, but still should be able to run as long as they desire without tiring. Maybe you should do that in response of pretending to take out my eyes?" The end of her sentence quieted until she was nearly whispering. With a flick of her tail, Hollyflower was off to talk to Stonetooth, and I was left alone.

I saw Raggedpaw sitting quietly by the fresh-kill pile, and joined him. "Anything particularly interesting about that frog?" I asked, and he jumped a few inches.

"No, just thinking about… death… and stuff," he muttered. I pressed my side to his, and purred contentedly. He looked at me and smiled.

"I'm here for you," I mewed. "But now I'm going to sleep. But I'll still be here for you, just unconscious." Raggedpaw laughed, and smiled.

I turned away, my happy, light mask falling quickly. Instead of happy thoughts my mind was filled with death and stuff, but not about dead warriors and medicine cats. My mind was filled with Wolf's teaching and how to kill – to cause death.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Yeah, update! Enjoy!**

I was bored. Bored with all the training, the everyday life, the everything. I hadn't done _anything_ interesting since last meeting with Wolf. Of course, Hollyflower had me practice with her almost every day those moves – but not in the company of another cat.

I was becoming a good warrior, one that ShadowClan would be proud of. Raggedpaw and I usually hunted together, and I was beginning to think of him as something more than my best friend. It was near my tenth moon, and ShadowClan hadn't changed much.

Archpaw had joined the ranks of the apprentices, although he wasn't much fun compared to Tallpoppy and Morningheart. Sedgewhisker had continuously moped around camp, even though her mentor had died a while back.

I sighed, and lay out in a particularly warm patch of sun by the elder's den. Brackenkit and Featherkit, now nearing apprenticeship, sat in front of Lizardfang. The old tom was telling an intricate story of the major WindClan battle, a few seasons past.

"Morningstar, who was just Morningtail back then, she attacked with a fury like no other. Even then she was crazy. She had a vendetta against ShadowClan ever since Cindertail killed her brother Grassclaw." My ears pricked up as I heard this, and I turned to the elder.

"Now, we don't know what happened, but some say Cindertail killed Grassclaw because the WindClan cat was stealing a kit. No kit was found, and Cindertail was exiled."

"But Vixenpelt said that her kit, Dewkit, was missing," Featherstripe interjected.

"I know that," Lizardfang grumbled. "Let me continue with the story! And then, Morningtail attacked me, and I batted her down. Who knew that I would beat the future WindClan leader?"

Realizing that Lizardfang wasn't going to say anything else entertaining, I moved off, yawning as I went. I had been on my best behavior for the past half moon, just to show Cedarstar I was worthy of going to a Gathering. I mean, Raggedpaw was about a moon older than me, and he already went to two!

There wasn't much to do, and the heat was blazing down on everyone. Hunting would be the best right now, to keep my mind busy and to show I wanted to go.

The pools of water that I had become accustomed to were gone, dried up by the hot summer sun. Now that I thought of it, why were the other cat's impressions of ShadowClan that they were cold? During the summer – and probably the other months, too – they were the hottest, with the sun bearing down on them.

A lone butterfly flew above me, making a small shadow that did nothing to stop the heat. A frog croaked somewhere nearby, and I crouched down to try and find it. I followed its croak, because it obviously hadn't realized it was being stalked.

My eyes darted around, trying to find the source of the noise. The sun was gradually losing altitude, and sinking farther down in the sky.

I inhaled deeply when I found it, happy that the frog would no longer elude my senses. With a few steps forward, I was within pouncing distance. A well-aimed leap launched me directly onto it, and I bit down hard, harder than I really should have.

It gave a little whimper, but became limp immediately. I was purring in happiness as I trotted back to camp. The large frog was easily visible, and I wanted to show Cedarstar.

I got an awed gasp from Archpaw, who hadn't really gotten hunting lessons yet. Hollyflower smiled her small smile, but Cedarstar wasn't in sight. I cursed, but the frog luckily blocked out the word. It was placed gently on the pile, and I walked back over to the elder's den.

The kits had left, and the elders were lounging in the sun. I stopped a few feet from them, and stretched out. The sun was so nice, I thought drowsily.

It had been nearly thirty minutes before Cedarstar startled me out of my nap. "As you as know, ShadowClan, tonight is the Gathering!" His cry was met with cheers. I cheered too, although it was much more groggily.

"Tonight, I choose Morningheart, Cloudfur, Hollyflower, Tallpoppy, Foxheart, Mudstorm, Nightpaw and Yellowpaw. Oh, and of course myself, Dewclaw and Sedgewhisker," he added, as if they were a second thought. "We are leaving in an hour, so prepare yourselves."

Cedarstar was a good leader, I decided. The way he talked commanded all around him, and he had enough wits not to lead us into danger and death. He was a keeper. Although, how many lives did he have left? He had been leader for a long time, and Featherstripe had said he had been appointed leader when she was a new warrior. Of course, he didn't _look_ that old.

I looked around for Raggedpaw, and was disappointed when I couldn't find him. He must be out on patrol or something. Tallpoppy and Morningheart were talking quietly near the entrance of camp, probably excited that they were going to be announced to the entire Clan population.

With nothing going on, I drowsed off once more, purring at all my hard work finally paying off.

"Yellowpaw," a soft voice whispered, its tongue rasping against my fur. It felt so good. I murmured in response, and slowly cracked my eyes.

"Oh, Raggedpaw," I mewed, blinking as my eyes adjusted to the light. "I was wondering where you were."

He smiled, and my heart nearly melted. "Well, everyone else is going to leave without you. I assumed that you actually wanted to go to your first Gathering."

My eyes, which were slowly blinking, shot open. I mouthed a couple of times, unable to get words out. My head swiveled around, looking for the Gathering group. They were together at the entrance, talking lightheartedly.

I scrambled up, whispered a quick thanks to Raggedpaw and dragged my tongue across his cheek. As I arrived, Cedarstar let off a good-natured chuckle. "Now that we're all ready, we can set off," he mewed, and began trotting. We all followed in pairs, and I was paired with Nightpaw.

He made some small talk, and I happily chatted with him until we reached the tunnel. I was in a much better mood tonight, and he didn't seem as annoying. The tunnel was as crowded as usual, but it was wonderful going back out into fresh air.

Dew was gathering slowly on the grass below my feet, and the trip was soon over. Fourtrees loomed ahead, and it was one of the most wonderful things I've ever seen. A bunch of cats just milled around, making small talk.

"Go ahead and make some friends. But don't get too close to them," Hollyflower warned me, "you never know if you'd fight against them someday. And don't give too much away!" she had to yowl, because I already shot off.

There were so many young cats for me to talk to! The medicine cats were at the center of the group, and I could hear snippets of their conversation. The leaders were in the tree, and deputies around it. There was so much to look at.

My run was cut short as I vaulted into a pure white she-cat. As I picked myself off the floor, I bristled, but she smiled. I could see that she actually looked happy.

"Hi, what's your name?" she asked, and my fur began to flatten. However, I couldn't fully lose the idea that this she-cat might attack me at any moment. She was ThunderClan, in my defense.

"Yellowpaw," I said cautiously, trying to get my fur to become flatter. The moon shone brightly off her pelt, and I briefly wondered how she could hunt with fur like that.

"Oh, you're an apprentice too!" she said with a smile. This caught me off guard. "My name is Snowpaw. I'm from ThunderClan, but you probably already knew that. I know you're from ShadowClan, and they say your senses are sharper."

Snowpaw tended to babble, but she was entertaining to listen to. "How _is_ life in ThunderClan, anyway?" I wished to know more of the life, especially since we were taught they were incompetent fools.

"Well, there are a lot of trees and brambles and stuff, but the prey's running good. I hear that our deputy –" Snowpaw was cut off by another she-cat, who came strutting towards us importantly.

"Not giving away secrets, are you Snowpaw?" the she-cat asked, sizing me up. She was about apprentice age, but very thick – especially for a she-cat.

Snowpaw smiled tentatively, and her tail tip twitched nervously. "Uh, hi Bluepaw. This is, uh, Yellowpaw. She's from ShadowClan."

Bluepaw looked at me suspiciously, before blinking her eyes. "Hello, Yellowpaw," she said contemptuously. "As my sister -"

A loud yowl interrupted Bluepaw, but instead of looking annoyed, she looked at the leaders.

"Welcome cats of all Clans," Morningstar yowled, making her seem a lot nicer than she was. "WindClan will start this Gathering off by saying that there is plentiful prey and our Clan is stronger than ever. Once ShadowClan stopped attacking our borders, we were able to rebuild, and now live in peace."

I saw Cedarstar ruffle in the tree, and I was about to spit a scathing remark. How dare she blame it all on ShadowClan! No wonder everyone thought that we were evil, what with the stories they told.

Pinestar, from ThunderClan, reported that his Clan was good, and the prey was running. A queen had birthed two healthy kits, but that was all.

Cedarstar talked about how ShadowClan was strong, but stayed strictly away from the previous WindClan jibe. It annoyed me, but I held my tongue – especially so close to ThunderClan apprentices. He told the gathered cats about Morningheart and Tallpoppy, and both got cheered. Lastly, he mentioned Archpaw, and then passed the speaking to Hailstar.

Hailstar announced that RiverClan was also doing fine. The fact that all the Clans made me happy, but it seemed a bit odd. Of course, if a Clan was weakened in any way, others might attack. So it would be best to pretend to be fine.

Hailstar, when he was finished describing shortly the fish count in the river, announced that the Gathering was over. The leaders nimbly jumped down from the tree, and began collecting their warriors. Bluepaw nodded once towards me, but I could see a coldness inside directed at me.

However, Snowpaw was happy as she said goodbye. "Bye, Yellowpaw! I hope you're at the next Gathering!"

I smiled faintly as she bounded off. "Uh, you too!" I called, and followed Hollyflower out.

"You didn't talk about any of our secrets, right?" she whispered in a menacing voice. I shook my head furiously, hoping that she would understand that I would never do anything like that. "Good. See, Gatherings aren't that bad!"

**A/N: A tad of a filler. I'm sorry if I got my ages wrong, but I haven't read Warriors in a while, plus I like the idea of Snow and Yellow being friends. And then Bluestar having to accept that the cat she didn't really trust was now her medicine cat. I don't think that really makes sense, but it makes sense in my head. And since this is getting obnoxiously long, I shall finish. Review, please!**


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: Enjoy this update. I liked it, because it was sweet between the two.**

I was nearing my eleventh moon, and I could see my skills progressing. I now knew how to hunt every prey our territory had to offer, and could take down nearly any warrior who tried to take me on. Hollyflower was proud of me, but I knew that she would never outright tell me. I could see it, however, in her eyes when I beat Raggedpaw or any other cat.

I was sitting in the neat circle of grass that we practiced fighting on, listening to Hollyflower drone on and on. She was talking about an advanced technique that involved hooking your claws into a victim's pelt.

We were all alone, and the sun shone harshly down on top of our backs. Hollyflower practiced on the air, and I systematically followed her. This wasn't so hard. I wondered vaguely why it was considered 'advanced,' because I could have done this a moon ago.

My mind wandered again, but my body was skilled in following orders without paying much attention. There was another Gathering last night, and it had been as equally peaceful as the one before it. Sadly, I hadn't seen Snowpaw, but I did meet a new cat from RiverClan.

Peace had been prominent in all the Clans, and nobody had anything to complain about. Prey was plentiful, but the Clans better be stocking up before leaf-fall came.

"Were you just listening to me, Yellowpaw?" Hollyflower snapped. I quickly met her eyes, and nodded. "Oh? Then what did I just say?"

"You said to effectively catch your claws in a cat's pelt you need _force_," I mewed confidently, not dropping my gaze from her harsh eyes.

Hollyflower snorted angrily. "I said that before. What I _just_ said was that to finish the attack you need to use your weight to pin them to the ground. Understood?"

"Yes, Hollyflower," I meowed, dipping my head. My mentor looked surprised, but didn't say anything. With a huff, she turned around and began walking away. "Where are you going?" I cried, sprinting to catch up to her.

Hollyflower didn't look at me, but just continued on her way. "Back to camp. It's obvious you aren't interested in learning any moves today," she spat. I went to talk, but she glared at me. "Plus, it's almost dusk. Raggedpaw is having his ceremony tonight. And, if-"

"Oh, I forgot about that!" I meowed in glee. Raggedpaw was going to have his warrior ceremony today. And, although it meant that he wouldn't be in the apprentice's den with me any longer, I was extremely happy for him.

"Will you let me finish?" Hollyflower snarled. I muttered a sorry, but it looked like she didn't really believe me. "If you're lucky, I might take you out again tonight. I want to see how you're doing with your stealth."

I crowed in delight, for it meant that my mentor wasn't _that_ mad at me. The black she-cat gave me a rare smile, and sped up. Soon, we were racing back to camp.

Hollyflower arrived before me, and she teased me about my speed. I came back at her by saying that I had gotten faster, and I wasn't even out of breath.

The camp was nearly silent, the only sounds being Featherkit and Brackenkit playing by the elder's den. Poolcloud watched them silently, and meowed hello when we passed. I bade Hollyflower goodbye, and assured her I would meet her the second Raggedpaw's ceremony was over.

I then padded through the camp to find Raggedpaw. He was probably in the apprentice's den. However, when I poked my head into the den, I was only greeted by Archpaw. "Hi, Yellowpaw! How are you?"

"I'm good, Archpaw," I said slowly. Raggedpaw wasn't here, and judging by his bedding he hasn't been here for a while. "Have you seen Raggedpaw?"

Archpaw's face fell, but he answered with the same high-pitched chirp. "Yeah, sure! He went over to the elders. Said something about leadership. I dunno. He left our training session pretty early, so it must've been important."

I thanked Archpaw and swiftly withdrew from the apprentice's den. The kits were still playing outside and bade me happy hellos as I passed. Featherkit made an attempt to tackle me, and I played along. Brackenkit joined in, and soon I was writhing on the floor as the kits beat me, the 'horrible ThunderClan kit-snatcher.'

Growling deep in my throat, I reared up and batted them both playfully away. "You'll pay for this in blood, ShadowClan! I may not have stolen your kits this time, but I promise - oof!"

Brackenkit launched himself at my head, and knocked me to the ground. "No more kits for you," he snarled, placing his tiny paw on my neck.

I got up and shook my fur off. "Fine, fine. You guys win! Now let me go!"

The kits gamboled around my paws, chanting 'we won' over and over again. "You can't leave!" Featherkit whined, stopping suddenly. Brackenkit bumped into her, and both kits fell to the ground. The two began wrestling, and I took that as a chance to escape.

Raggedpaw was in the elder's den like Archpaw had said. Featherstripe was talking lightly to him, using a very soothing tone. "Hello, Yellowpaw," Lizardfang mewed, and waved his tail. I waved back, and then returned my gaze to Raggedpaw.

I strained my ears, but could only hear a snippet of their conversation: "You'll be fine."

"Yellowpaw?" Raggedpaw asked, turning around. Our noses touched, and I pulled away quickly in embarrassment. Raggedpaw laughed lightly, and sat down with his tail curled around his paws.

"I'm here to waste some time with my ceremony. I thought I'd ask some stories of the elders. 'Cause the stories can't just be for kits, right?"

"That's right!" Lizardfang chimed in from across the den. "Now," he mewed, shifting his position into something comfier, "what do you want to hear?"

I looked at Raggedpaw, offering him the chance to go first. Raggedpaw seemed to think for a minute, but I knew that he already had a story planned out to ask. "How about something… involving a strong leader."

Lizardfang seemed a bit surprised, but he held the majority of the emotion in. "What leader? ShadowClan is notorious for their strong leaders. And why?"

"Shadow. I want to hear stories of her, since she's the one who started ShadowClan in all its glory. And _why_? Because I know that I'm going to be leader someday. I need some good stories to base myself off of," Raggedpaw mewed.

Featherstripe snorted. "I'm sorry, young kit," she mewed, and Raggedpaw bristled at her wording. "How do you know that you're going to be leader? I mean, every kit _wants_ to be leader, but only one cat can be a leader."

"I just know," Raggedpaw stated stubbornly. "Please just tell me the story?"

Lizardfang shrugged, and began his tale. "Shadow was once a loner, like all the rest of the cats. She hunted along the ShadowClan territory along with a few other cats who shared her stalking traits. Then, the other cats decided to form Clans. You know them. They're Thunder, River, Wind and Sky."

Featherstripe began talking, and for the first time Lizardfang didn't seem to care. "They decided to form Clans, but there was one decision that plagued the cats that hunted in the marsh territories. Who would be leader? They held a series of fights to determine the leader, but there was a tie. Shadow and a large tom named Kindle had tied in the final round."

"The marsh cats then had to choose which cat they wanted as their leader," Lizardfang explained. "Both Kindle and Shadow tried different tactics to getting more cats onto their sides, but it seemed that there was no way to tell who would win in the end."

"Shadow won in the end," Raggedpaw interjected. I could hear some nervousness in his voice, and I pressed my pelt against his in comfort. He looked at me with happiness.

"Yes, kit, she did," Featherstripe said, and Raggedpaw bristled again. I could understand why he felt that way. I didn't like being called 'kit' either, because I was almost a warrior.

"But the reason is _why_," Lizardfang grumbled, rolling over to his side. "The cats that would become ShadowClan chose Shadow because she was a good leader. She had traits that Kindle didn't."

Featherstripe nodded. "She was inspirational, trustworthy, confident, and she could lead like no others. That's why she was chosen." Featherstripe looked to Lizardfang, who was scratching behind his ear.

"Yeah, that's why," he grunted. "Now, Raggedpaw. If you're serious about knowing you're going to be a leader, you gotta be good. Be inspirational. Lead your cats and care for them as if they were your children." Lizardfang looked at Raggedpaw, and I could feel the apprentice shifting under the intensity of the gaze. "You may have what it takes…"

Featherstripe chuckled, and stood up. With a practiced shake, all the dust and moss fell from her pelt. "Don't listen to him, Raggedpaw. I think you'll make a nice leader. But first you'd have to be a warrior. I think it's time for your ceremony."

Raggedpaw jumped up and looked outside. The sky was beginning to darken further, fully immersed in shadows. He ran outside, but not before quickly licking my cheek. "Clean up your pelt!" Featherstripe called as he left. "Kits," she then whispered to herself.

I followed the elder through the den, and into the center of camp. Already, all of ShadowClan was waiting by the High Branch, and Cedarstar sat on top. Raggedpaw was at the bottom of it, quickly cleaning his pelt with quick flicks of his tongue.

Cedarstar examined his Clan for a few seconds, and then held his tail up for silence. Immediately all idle chatter stopped as the leader opened his mouth. "I, Cedarstar, leader of ShadowClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on this apprentice. He has trained hard to understand the ways of your noble code, and I commend him to you as a warrior in his turn. Raggedpaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your clan, even at the cost of your life?"

Raggedpaw opened his mouth and said in a clear voice, "I do." Nobody talked or moved. They were witnessing the Clan's favorite apprentice become a warrior. He would disappoint them with all his training, I knew.

Cedarstar smiled briefly, and then continued. "Then by the powers of StarClan I give you your warrior name. Raggedpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Raggedpelt. StarClan honors your intelligence and your confidence and we welcome you as a full warrior of ShadowClan."

The Clan cheered as Cedarstar rested his muzzle on Raggedpelt's head. Raggedpelt then licked Cedarstar's shoulder with respect, as was customary. "Raggedpelt! Raggedpelt!" we all cried out.

I went to congratulate Raggedpelt on his new name, but he had already sat down in the center of camp. I knew that he wouldn't want to be disturbed at the beginning of his vigil.

With a happy smile, I bounded off through the camp entrance. I caught Raggedpelt's eye before I left and mouthed 'Congrats.' As I trekked through the territory, I couldn't stop thinking about how happy Raggedpelt looked.

In a moon or so, I would become a warrior, too. I couldn't wait for that moment. But for now, I had to quicken my pace. If I was late to Hollyflower, I could be certain I wouldn't be a warrior for a while.

**A/N: Please pardon anything that's wrong. I haven't read the ****Warriors**** series in forever, and I'm quickly coming off of my obsession with it. Please review?**


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